Father Anthony Viviano traces his spiritual journey back to his childhood. He grew up in St. Louis with four siblings, raised in a Catholic household that highlighted the deeply devout traditions upheld by their father Joseph, a second-generation Italian American whose family immigrated to the United States from Sicily in the early 1900's.
Among the Italian traditions they practiced was the distribution of St. Joseph's bread, a Sicilian custom that dates back to the Middle Ages. It's a symbolic "thank you" for the many blessings God has granted. The bread is made in Italian bakeries in the United States and given to those who are most in need. Communal tables are set up on March 19, the feast day of St. Joseph.
The Viviano children would go door to door in their St. Louis neighborhood and offer the bread to anyone who wanted it, given as a reminder of our many blessings. The children learned early that charity is a duty, and faith is foremost in life.
"Our home was filled with the Catholic identity and Catholic culture with rosaries, prayer cards, we did family novenas and pilgrimages and prayers together. It was part of the air we breathed, so we were rich in the Catholic faith and that's where the seeds were planted for me to foster the idea of what one's vocation what might be," Father Anthony said.
His vocation to become a priest came later in life. He played baseball at Benedictine College and upon graduation, he returned to St. Louis to help his father run the Viviano Wholesale Produce Company. While doing the work of a truck driver and delivery man, Anthony felt a tug toward the priesthood.
With his father's example of prioritizing faith and compassion, Anthony began doing volunteer work with the Missionaries of Charity in the inner city of St. Louis. They are the order of Saint Mother Teresa and Anthony watched closely as he visited the sisters and offered his help in their mission, volunteering multiple times a week around his work schedule.
"I consider that time with the sisters my seminary before formal seminary, to watch the sisters operate on divine providence being that they put their complete trust in God," Father Anthony said. "They pray, they do the work and God provides. It was a beautiful thing to see and to see their self-sacrifice in living out the gospel message in a radical way and see their absolute reverence for the Mass and respect for the priests brought things full circle from the way we were raised."
And from that experience, Anthony answered the call to become a priest and entered the Sacred Heart School of Theology near Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He studied there for 5 years and was ordained in June of 2012 at the age of 49. He celebrated 12 years of priesthood last year and currently serves as pastor for two churches in the Diocese of Jefferson City: St. Andrews parish in Tipton and Annunciation parish in California, both in rural Missouri.
Father Anthony can't help but credit the vibrant faith of his Sicilian family as a catalyst to his path.
"There is so much rooted in the Italian culture with the many saints and Popes from Italy. Perhaps God gave the Italians a certain blessing in that way. Italians are passionate, emotive people and it's seen in how the culture adamantly reveres the Catholic faith."
Father Anthony is known for his devout and meticulous approach in presenting the Mass. He remains dedicated to long-standing Catholic traditions, many that he first observed as a young boy.
"Personally, for me my preeminent saint is Padre Pio," he said. "I've always been drawn to his Italian roots. The millions who flocked to San Giovanni Rotundo to see him and share in his mystical experience."
Father Anthony's faith is fervent, and he embraces the Italian culture that led him to where he is today.
"There's an unabashedness with the Italians in how the culture vibrantly exalts the saints, especially the Blessed Mother in festivals and parades that bring people together in celebration of their faith."
Author Bio:
Mark Viviano is Father Anthony's brother. Mark recently retired from a 40-year career as a sports broadcaster and currently writes for Catholic Review magazine in Baltimore, Maryland, and hosts podcasts for Catholic Review Radio. Mark and Father Anthony Viviano are nephews of Festa entertainment director Jerry Viviano.